英女王夫妻、数週間以内にコロナワクチン接種へ　報道

【ロンドンＡＦＰ＝時事】英国のエリザベス女王（94）が、米製薬大手ファイザーと独製薬ベンチャーのビオンテックが開発した新型コロナウイルスのワクチンの接種を数週間以内に受ける方針だと、英メディアが5日夜報じた。同ワクチンは英規制当局が緊急使用を承認し、来週には世界初となる接種が開始される。（写真はクリスマスを家族と過ごした後、教会から出たエリザベス女王とフィリップ殿下。英サンドリンガムで）
　英大衆日曜紙メール・オン・サンデーによると、エリザベス女王と夫のフィリップ殿下（９９）は、高齢であることからワクチンを優先的に接種されるもので、特別な優遇措置を受けることはないという。
　同紙は、「より多くの人にワクチン接種を奨励するため」、女王と殿下は接種を受けたことを公表するだろうと報じている。ワクチン接種をめぐっては、いわゆるワクチン反対派らによって国民の接種意欲が低下し得ると懸念されている。
　英国は２日、ファイザーとビオンテックが開発したワクチンの緊急使用を承認。保健当局は、接種の優先順位を年齢や体の弱さを基準に判断するとしている。
　最初に接種を受けるのは老人ホームの入居者や職員で、続いて８０歳を超える高齢者、最前線で働く医療従事者、介護職員らが続く。その後、他の高齢者や臨床的にかなり脆弱（ぜいじゃく）な人々に接種され、それ以降は年齢で優先順位が決まる。
　女王のワクチン接種について英王室にコメントを求めたが、回答は得られていない。
　大衆朝刊紙デーリー・ミラーは、ワクチン接種率を上げるため、接種を受ける意向を表明する英国の著名人が相次いでいると報じている。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2020/12/07-11:32）

Britain's Queen Elizabeth II will receive the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine within weeks, after UK regulators granted emergency approval and the world's first roll-out begins next week, reports late Saturday said.
The monarch, 94, and her 99-year-old husband Prince Philip are in line to get the jab early due to their age and will not receive preferential treatment, the Mail on Sunday reported.
The newspaper said Britain's most senior royals would reveal they have been given the inoculation to encourage more people to take up the vital jab, amid fears so-called anti-vaxxers could dent enthusiasm for it.
Britain on Wednesday gave emergency approval to the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine, with health officials set to use criteria based on age and vulnerability to decide the order of people to receive it.
Elderly care home residents and their carers will be the very first to get inoculated, followed by those aged 80 and over and frontline health and care staff.
Other elderly people and the clinically extremely vulnerable will be next, with the rest of the population then prioritised by age.
Buckingham Palace did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Daily Mirror also reported a string of high-profile figures in Britain had committed publicly to getting the vaccine in a bid to boost take-up.
They include Monty Python star Michael Palin and Bob Geldof, the tabloid said.
Britain has pre-ordered 40 million doses of the vaccine in total, and is set to receive an initial batch of 800,000 to begin next week's rollout.
Regulators were forced to defend their world-first approval on Wednesday of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, insisting it met all safety standards after US and European officials queried the rapid process.
Meanwhile, plans are reportedly being stepped up to ensure any complications arising from the end of the Brexit transition period on December 31 do not impact its roll-out.
The vaccine will be manufactured at Pfizer's plant in Puurs, Belgium, and needs to be transported in temperature-controlled thermal shippers that use dry ice.
The Observer reported late Saturday that ministers have drawn up contingency plans to fly millions of doses into Britain on military aircraft in the event of Brexit-related disruption at UK ports.
We will do this if necessary, a health department spokesperson told the newspaper.
Talks to finalise a UK-EU free trade deal and avoid potential chaos in January are currently gridlocked, with just days left to seal an agreement.